How do gang members learn to write graffiti?

[Jenna]

I've noticed that many cities across the US have very similar-looking gang graffiti. So how do gang members learn to write graffiti, and how do they keep the style uniform across cities? The style looks too systematic and difficult to decipher to just be idiosyncratic or intuitive; it looks like people had to learn it like a foreign language. Are there nationwide conferences and workshops for gang members who want to standardize their graffiti? Is gang graffiti in other Anglophone countries similar to that in the US? Just wondering. I went to high school with a lot of gang members, but I never quite got up the nerve to ask them.

[Jenna]

Maybe I should have asked this on gangmemberforums.com instead.

[lewisipso]

Sorry. Did not see this until now. If I understand it correctly, it's shared info. And it is much like learnibg a second language. I watched a video once of a teen gang member telling a story with nothing but hand signs. and keep in mind that "taggers" are not always gang members. Hope this helps. My knowledge is limited greatly.

[PapaBear]

"taggers" are not always gang members

They like to be know as "Crews", "crues", "cruze" and thereby cannot be called gangsters. Instead, they are referred to as "cruisers" in their circles. But, no matter what they are called, they are gangsters! Especially when they kill senior citizen ladies who call them on their activities. Taggers may start out as loners but as soon as they become known they are picked up and initiated into a group.

Here is some interesting reading. You can find more by typing in any combination of words including "Taggers", "Tagging", etc on google.

http://drjoolzsnapshotz.blogspot.com...ggers-art.html

http://13radicalriders14.blogspot.co...5_archive.html

http://www.csun.edu/~hcchs006/table.html

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la...tory?track=rss

http://www.graffiti.org/

http://www.at149st.com/

[Jks9199]

OK... I was wondering how serious the original question was... It was kinda off the wall.

Short answer:
Graffiti styles vary by region. They aren't all the same. However, some common threads spread as the gangs spread. When a Los Angeles MS-13 member moves to Virginia and forms a clique here -- he shares the style he learned in LA. When a Chicago Gangster Disciple moves to New Jersey, he teaches how to be GD to the folks he gathers around him. They teach a kid who later moves to Virginia. So, we get very similar GD material in VA.

And, really, bubble writing spreads constantly among kids. Copying various Gothic typefaces also can spread the same way.

And, thanks to the internet and cyberbanging, more and more is being spread "directly" to new areas.

Long answer:

There are 3 main types of graffiti. Tagger, Gang, and "Other." Taggers are marking territory to prove they can, as a loose rule. They're typically more artistic or stylistic. Gang graffiti is absolutely marking turf; it's showing who's here, and what's going on. It's going to be pretty straightforward as a general rule. "Other" includes lots of stuff, from "Billy Loves Susie" to hate graffiti (which can sometimes be gang graffiti), to druggie graffiti... and more.

Different styles spread through word of mouth, through travels of the so-called artists. I'm sure they're sharing them online -- but I personally haven't found out where. And... merge into the Short Answer above here...

[Virginian]

They use the paper with wider spaced lines and those big pencils.

[vicat777]

Graffiti is like any other knowledge they learn as members of a particular street gang. That is why you will see a lot of similar writings across the country as the national street gangs move from state to state.

[Jenna]

Thanks for your responses! It probably takes a lot of skill to learn gang languages. If only they applied that skill to learning in school instead of to learning gang languages.

[Hawk1]

I spose when you have sweet F*&%-all to do with your time, you have to pass it somehow..

[Terminator]

And gangs are recruiting members young as ever. Just take a look at this notorious gangsta with the 4th street posse:

[ManImBored]

I figured they just had coloring books that showed them what to do.